Tadashi is here
by Tsuru Maiden
Summary: When a confrontation with Yokai leads to his exposed identity, Hiro doesn't think he'll ever be ready to accept the man behind the mask. Multi-chaptered AU. Ratings will change.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's notes: This is still just an idea, and battles and events will probably deviate from canon. Do give me your thoughts and feedback of the story so that I can improve! Thank you.**

* * *

Fred and Wasabi leap into the air to grab the mask, but a wave of microbots surface to form a wall and effectively blocks them. Wasabi slices it in half with a triumphant crow, but Yokai only slams his fist on the ground without breaking a sweat. A grey dome readily encases him, with the threat of burying him alive. He knows Fred will jump into the scene and breathe fire to break his friend out; so Yokai lifts his hand and sends him flying with another turret of microbots.

GoGo – the only one who's presenting the slightest challenge, Yokai thinks – hurls her maglev discs at him, while Honey Lemon tries to trap and impede him with her chemical capsules. Their teamwork is sloppy, he thinks beneath his mask. Yokai simply ducks to avoid the discs, and swiftly conjures a u-shaped slide with his microbots to direct Honey Lemon's capsule back at her. Honey Lemon shrieks pathetically as it encases her feet in hardening foam, while GoGo grabs her discs back and narrowly avoids being punctured by more microbots.

Yokai stares at the chaos beneath him and smirks. They're all so pathetically _weak_ , he sighs, trying to defeat him with skills they've barely grasped. It's nothing – _nothing_ , he repeats fiercely – compared to the month of training _he_ went through. It's entertaining to tear apart their confidence and will to fight. Only a few more attacks, a handful of close misses – maybe the capture or death of one of them – and everyone would crumple. But Yokai has to remember his other, grander plan, the one he can't afford to lose now. Tearing his eyes away from the fight raging below, he starts building a series of stairs with a lazy flick of his wrist and ascends slowly to the skylight.

* * *

On the ground, GoGo slides away, inches away from a whizzing microbot. Wasabi slices and dices, not daring to stop for fear that one second of uncertainty will leave him with a punctured heart. Fred jumps and somersaults ("Did you guys _see_ that?") trying not to think too hard about what might have happened to him if he was even a _second_ slower, and Honey Lemon slingshots and throws as she runs in dizzying circles.

It's all going according to plan, Hiro wants to assure them. They just have to continue distracting Yokai for a little while more while he and Baymax sneak up behind him to capture the mask. And as more microbots attacks start bursting out around them, Baymax navigates through the screaming bullets and veers faster, closer, so close that Hiro reaches out to grab the mask–

Only for Yokai to turn to look at him. Hiro freezes when their eyes meet for a second, then Baymax brakes mid-flight and he ends up catapulting right into Yokai instead.

Hiro lurches in surprise because he _never_ miscalculates (Okay there was that _one_ time but it wasn't exactly his fault). He can barely collect his thoughts properly before the ground rises up to meet him, and he and Yokai crash painfully into the concrete floor. Hiro scrabbles up, dazed and breathless. His fingers are clutching onto something and without thinking, Hiro raises his hand up.

It's Yokai's mask.

Hiro stares and stares and stares and thinks that this is the mask of Tadashi's murderer and he's finally _done it_ and he looks up and–

It's Tadashi.

Hiro stares some more. Half of Tadashi's face is burnt and brutally scarred. It is a red leering mess that leaves his left eye nearly closed, and Hiro wonders if he can even see through it.

"Tada–"

"Give me that, you little brat!" Yokai – Tadashi – snaps at him and makes a grab for the mask. Hiro steps back instinctively, but Yokai only leaps forward and punches him in the gut, wrenching the mask free of his hands.

"Stupid kid," he mumbles, strapping the mask onto his forehead. He barely spares Hiro a glance before gathering his microbots again. They stream in like a million, skittering black spiders and Hiro wonders dazedly how his creation can look so horribly wrong.

But Tadashi is walking away and his mind clears in a panicky haste.

"Tadashi!" Hiro screams, while his mind whispers "Brother...?". Tadashi turns sharply once his name is called, and Hiro's heart lifts. It's him. It's him. It's him it's him it's _him_ –

Then a fist connects with his stomach, and his line of repeated thoughts halt. The punch almost makes Hiro scream in pain, and he spits out flecks of blood and saliva as his knees start to give way. The next thing he knows, his head smacks into the wall and he is staring at his brother. He has his fingers wrapped around his neck in a frighteningly strong grip.

"Ta–"

"Quiet!" Tadashi spits. "I'm asking the questions–" Really, Hiro thinks, because, sure bro that is _so_ original– "Who the hell are you, how do you know me, and why do you know my name?"

Hiro doesn't answer. He's too busy staring because how can Tadashi _not_ know?

"Well?!" The fingers tighten and Hiro starts kicking his legs in discomfort.

"I'm Hiro! I'm your brother!" He wheezes. The fist only clenches harder and Hiro starts to panic.

"Liar." Tadashi says softly. His warm brown eyes are horrifyingly cold. "I have no family. I'm Tadashi." And that sentence is so ironic that Hiro would have laughed if he could stop choking.

"Really," Hiro gabbles as he spies Baymax in his periphery. "You're Tadashi Hamada. Eighteen this year. Studies – studied – at San Fransokyo–" His voice pitches a little higher when Tadashi's fingers twitches unconsciously. "Likes to wear cardigans and is actually a pretty cool older brother–" Tadashi's eyes widen and his fingers relax a fraction.

"Hiro?" He mumbles. Something – recognition, Hiro hopes – flashes in Tadashi's eyes and when he looks up, Hiro aches to call out his brother's name again–

"HIRO!" GoGo screams, and everything happens at once. Baymax's fist collides into Tadashi and sends him spiraling into a pile of rubble. Hiro drops to the ground and starts hacking violently. GoGo skids to a stop by his side with her maglev discs ready. Wasabi and Honey Lemon have their weapons poised to attack and Fred jumps into the scene (quite literally).

"We have him!" Fred crows, but when he sees the face that surfaces from the debris, his mouth drops open. Hiro sneaks a distracted glance at the team. GoGo's eyes are wide with shock, Honey's is brimming with tears, while Wasabi looks cautious and relieved and wary.

"Should have known you were lying," Tadashi spits at Hiro, his hand hovering over the scars on his face. "Trying to distract me – you're pretty sneaky for someone so young."

"I wasn't lying." Hiro's voice wobbles. "I _am_ your brother–"

"Stop. Lying. LIKE. _HIM_." Tadashi shouts as he lashes out his left arm and thrusts his right fist forward. A string of microbots follow his motion and Hiro jumps to avoid the attack.

"Who?" He screams. "Tell me, Tada–" A microbot races past his eye as GoGo scoops him up and speeds away to safety. "GoGo, what are you doing? That's Tadashi–"

"That's a man trying to kill us." GoGo snaps, her hands clamping down on Hiro's shoulders firmly. "Tell me. If that really was Tadashi, why would he be doing this?" Hiro is speechless. He doesn't know. All he knows is that that's the face of his older brother and he wants to know what happened to him.

"We should at least knock him unconscious first before we decide whether he's really Tadashi," GoGo finally points out flatly. Hiro appreciates her level-headedness. He needs it in a time like this, when his thoughts are dangerously clouded and he doesn't think his brain can comprehend anything else. But at the same time, he thinks he can see a glimmer of worry in GoGo's eyes as she skates away.

"Get the mask," Hiro commands all of them as he jumps on Baymax. "Then hold it ransom and knock him out – or take him in, whichever works. We need to know if he's Tadashi or not." His grip on Baymax's armour tightens involuntarily as he prepares to take to the air, but the scene before his eyes stops him. He can hear Honey Lemon's gasp and GoGo's agitated growl.

Yokai has gathered all of his microbots again, and there's a split second where the entire army of it is suspended in the air – looming over them like the physical embodiment of death. Everything seems to play out in slow-motion; Hiro feels his heartbeat slow as he screams at everyone to get away, only for the microbots to fall at them like an unyielding tidal wave. Baymax flies higher to safety while Hiro shouts warnings, and he thinks that nothing, no training whatsoever, could have prepared them for this. Microbots and missiles whisper in his ear at every corner. Hiro orders Baymax to turn and spin and dodge but no matter where he goes, he is never that far away from a stray bullet that might hit him. They're inching closer to death at every move. All of them.

Suddenly, the microbots slam into Hiro's side without so much as a warning, and Hiro gasps in pain as he is sent tumbling from Baymax's back. His lips start to form a scream and he thinks this is it this is it this is _it_ – until he crashes onto a platform of microbots and slides to the ground. Hiro jumps up in anxiety, but all he sees is Yokai's fleeting glance, before he disappears through the roof and everything goes black.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's notes: Thank you so much for the kind follows, favourites and reviews! While things are still building up, I hope readers will continue to stay as the tension escalates. Do R and R and once again, thank you.**

* * *

"What if that's Tadashi's evil twin brother?" Fred theorises wildly, resting on the couch with a blanket draped over him. "Maybe Hiro had another older brother he never knew about!"

GoGo, who's currently polishing her discs, looks like she's about to hurl the thing at him. Honey Lemon hands her a mug of hot chocolate (with two pumps of bubblegum syrup) and GoGo dully puts down her weapons. Despite her stoic facade, she's tired out from the battle earlier. Wasabi takes over for her and argues with Fred, while sipping at his cup of tea daintily. Nobody points out that his hands are still trembling. Or that GoGo needs sleep because she's been up early training. Or that Honey Lemon looks like she might cry at any moment and that Fred's laughter and theories sound just a little bit strained. So when Hiro surfaces from the room, clutching his aching head, everyone heaves a quiet sigh of relief.

"Are you feeling better?" Honey Lemon asks gently, as she offers him a warm drink as well. Hiro nods, even though he's not, and downs the tea in big gulps. His head is pounding, his throat is parched and when he's done, Hiro realises everyone is looking at him.

"What?" Hiro asks, trying to maintain an oblivious facade. But he knows better, and they do to. Hiro's just been caught in a life-and-death battle, only to discover that his supposedly deceased brother is behind all of it. Hiro can tell that they're trying to gauge his reaction now, and he is secretly relieved that he's chosen to leave Baymax in the room, because he doesn't need the nursing-bot to ask him how he feels.

"I don't know what to think or do," Hiro finally admits. "Heck, I don't even know if that's Tadashi or not. I mean, it definitely _looked_ like him..." He trails off, but everyone knows what he's thinking. If that masked man really is Tadashi, why would he be trying to kill them?

"Something obviously happened in the fire," GoGo mutters, popping her bubblegum at intervals more common than usual. "Maybe he lost his memory." That seems plausible, and everyone nods absent-mindedly.

"And he mentioned a 'him' – when he accused me of lying," Hiro mumbles, unwilling to recall the hostility of their exchange. "I wonder who he was talking about." The crushing weight of the mystery is starting to elevate slowly from his shoulders. It doesn't exactly go, he thinks, just like how Tadashi's death is never that far from his mind. But the exhaustion ebbs and heaves, gradually but surely, allowing him space to breathe and think.

Hiro hasn't realised just _how_ much he has come to depend on his friends when a few months ago, it was only Tadashi and he. The two of them (plus Aunt Cass, on occasion) against the world. He stares quietly at GoGo, Honey Lemon, Fred and Wasabi, who're still deep in thought. They, along with Baymax, don't exactly replace Tadashi. But they make the gaping hole in his heart a lot smaller.

"Krei?" Honey Lemon volunteers timidly, pulling Hiro away from his sentimental musing. "Maybe he was talking about Krei?"

Fred immediately abandons his wanton theories regarding Tadashi's evil twin. "That's it!" He crows, three-parts excitement and one-part anxiety. " _Krei!_ He's _manipulating_ our amnesiac Tadashi! That's so evil and c–!" The words die in his throat when he sees Hiro's expression. "I mean, cool in a sad, bad, super-villain way."

"What's our next move?" GoGo interrupts with a harsh glare, before Fred can dig himself an even deeper grave than the one she has prepared for him. Everyone turns to Hiro again, and the weight of their stares land squarely on his shoulders.

"We rest and fix our weapons," Hiro begins, running through a mental list on the required materials and processes. "Baymax..." he hesitates. "Baymax's tracker was damaged in the fight, so it'll take me a while to fix it. We'll rest and recuperate for the night." The gang nods their assent, before breaking up into their respective activities. Honey Lemon and Wasabi head to the bathroom for a shower, GoGo decides to power-nap in one of the quieter rooms, and Fred goes back to his comic book collection in order to distract and relax himself. Hiro gives them a distracted half-grin as they wander off, before shuffling back to his room. Baymax is waiting inside, expressionless and patient. His charger has been deposited at a corner in the room, and Hiro's fingers fumble to set it up.

"My trackers are fully functioning, Hiro," Baymax supplies helpfully, as he waddles up to the tousled-haired kid. "We can–"

"We won't."

Hiro's snap is sharp, and it fills the room in an empty and lonely echo. "I mean, we, I, I don't want to know who that person is if it isn't– isn't Tadashi," he's talking too fast because the fact that Tadashi has tried to kill him – tried to kill all of them – is starting to embed itself in his brain. Hiro feels torn, and it is starting to show. If that person really _was_ Tadashi, what happened to him? Why did he try to kill them and who was he operating under? And if that person _wasn't_ Tadashi... why was the resemblance so uncanny?

One week ago, the only thing Hiro Hamada ever wanted was for his older brother to still be alive. Now, he's not so sure, and the fact that he might not want Tadashi to be alive, to be here by his side, feels like an ugly, pointed betrayal to their brotherhood.

Hiro closes his eyes. He can still see his brother's face before the fire. ( _"Callaghan's in there, someone has to help." And he can still remember those_ stupid _and_ heroic _words he said just before he ended up disappearing forever)._ The neat dark hair hidden beneath the iconic San Fransokyo cap. The warm brown eyes he claims he inherited from their mother. They're nothing like the man behind the mask earlier – so full of bitterness and anguish – and even as Hiro fights to stop the horrible thought in his mind, the words are still whispered, and the effect is as loud as a scream.

 _Would it have been better... if Tadashi stayed dead?_

"Hiro?"

Hiro looks up. Baymax only has one expression – which technically counts as none at all seeing as that one expression is emotionless. But even he can tell that the robot is genuinely concerned. So Hiro forces those thoughts away and puts on a tired smile. "I'm fine. All of us need rest – including you. We'll patch up and proceed once we're ready."

But in his mind, he thinks _"We'll never be ready"._ Because no amount of training and upgrading of weapons and armour and whatsoever will prepare anyone for facing Tadashi Hamada.

* * *

Hiro delays for as long as he can. He triple checks the weapons, runs training courses for the repaired armours, and briefs them through the battle plans so thoroughly that everyone knows he's stalling. Even Fred.

"Hiro?" Unexpectedly, it is Honey Lemon that interrupts him mid-explanation. When everyone turns to look at her, she takes a deep breath and marches on. "I know you're worried and afraid, but we have to do it. We have to do this before he starts hurting more people. It's _now_ or never."

She is uncharacteristically serious, and, for a while, Hiro remembers that he isn't the only one reeling from the revelation that Tadashi is alive. Everyone is. Everyone here had – has – been a part of Tadashi's life, and while Hiro has known him the longest, being his younger brother, everyone here has admired, respected and loved Tadashi just the same.

"Yea. You're right." So Hiro strengthens his resolve, clenches his heart, and prepares Baymax's scanner. It _is_ now or never.

"Bay–" Suddenly, there is an explosion that tears the words right out of his mouth.

Hiro can hear concrete cracking and glass smashing just outside the room. He starts to shout orders, but there is another explosion soon after, and he can feel the floor vibrate below his feet before Baymax almost crashes into him and robs his breath away. As everyone starts looking around in confusion, reaching for their weapons, Fred prepares to jump through the window to witness the commotion outside. Hiro's about to tell him to be careful when the third explosion occurs. It's the loudest so far and sounds too close – just outside the room, in fact – and Hiro is still getting to his feet when one of the room's walls crumbles into debris. Someone is thrown inside.

It's Tadashi.

Dressed in dark – but still, everyday – clothes, and without the mask and black trench coat, Tadashi looks normal. Except for the somewhat distracting flesh burns on the left side of his face, and the fact that he just entered the room through a crumbling _wall_ , Hiro can almost block out the screaming disarray around them and pretend that everything is normal again.

But it's not. A large part of the room has already been demolished, smoke is streaming in from whatever wreck there is outside, and there's a badly beaten up Tadashi on the carpet floor. Everyone stares at the limp figure for a split, silent second before bursting into action.

"Fred, GoGo, go out there and check if there's anyone. But be careful." Fred and GoGo nod swiftly, and Hiro watches as they dive out of the room into the smoking commotion. He feels a twinge of worry, but there are more pressing matters at hand.

"Honey, I need you to check on Tadashi's injuries and bring over the first-aid kit. Wasabi, get the first aid–" Hiro breaks off when Tadashi starts to stir. Baymax waddles to him before Hiro can make him stop, his expression unchanging despite the discord around him.

"His pulse is slightly erratic but he is alive. Patient suffers from various bruises on his torso and–" Baymax is cut off when Tadashi crawls up, takes one look at him and screams.

"WHAT ARE YOU?!"

The silence is as deafening as his outburst.

Baymax blinks, twice. "I am Baymax, your personal healthcare companion. On a scale of ten–" A light shines through his breast plate brightly to indicate said scale. "How much would you rate your–"

Tadashi punches him. Hiro almost laughs at his brother's incredulous expression when his fist bounces back from Baymax's body and armour with surprising force. Almost.

"Tadashi...?" Hiro croaks, trying to maintain whatever level-headedness he has left. He decides not to ask why he doesn't remember Baymax, his own creation. "Why are you here? What happened?"

Tadashi's head snaps up at his voice, while Hiro gulps. When their eyes finally meet, something within them seems to flicker. But it's gone in a moment, and Tadashi frowns. "You're that kid who took my mask," he snarls harshly.

"I'm–" Hiro wants to correct him. _"I'm your brother."_ But he hesitates. "Never mind. What happened after I took your mask? Why are you here?"

Tadashi's glare intensifies and Hiro feels his breath hitching. He steps back unconsciously, feeling Honey Lemon reaching for one of her smoke bombs just in case. _"Don't hurt him,_ " he wants to say. _"Don't hurt my older brother."_

"I failed." Tadashi finally spits out, the fury evident in every syllable. "I let you take my mask and I failed to kill your friends. So _he_ got angry. He got angry and he took over the mask and he tried to kill me. All because of you." His eyes are horribly cold, and Hiro starts to tremble under the suffocating blankness of his gaze.

"H– he?" Honey Lemon squeaks. Hiro breaks from his trance and clenches his fists to stop the shivering. He realises that in his confusion, he has forgotten to pose one of the most important questions. Who is – was, he amends, (he hopes) – Tadashi operating under?

"Is it Krei?" Tadashi's eyes shift Honey Lemon now. There is no recognition in his look, only a vacant and slightly curious nonchalance. Seeing this, Honey gathers the courage to press on. "Were you operating under Krei when you attacked us?" There is an unvoiced question in her words – _"And are you still doing so now?"_

"Krei?" Tadashi narrows his eyes. "What are you talking about? I mean Callaghan."


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's note: Sorry for the late post and thank you so, so much for the lovely reviews. I would like to apologise for all the sloppiness of my previous chapters, and add that I have done my best to revise them. Any constructive criticism will be welcomed, and I will do my best to improve my writing style. On an extended note, I also apologise if any characters seem OOC, as I have not watched the movie for some time, and this story veers in another timeline with a darker setting. Regardless, I hope readers enjoy!**

* * *

"Nothing?" Hiro repeats, flabbergasted. "You really found no-one when you went out?" He's looking at GoGo as he says this, because he doesn't think there's anyone able to outrun the adrenaline-junkie with such a small time-window. Between Tadashi's sudden appearance and Fred and GoGo's departure, there's barely a minute left for the culprit of the explosions to escape.

"Nothing," GoGo repeats flatly. "We scanned the area as the fires were being put out. There wasn't anyone that was even remotely suspicious, but the culprit could have hidden among the chaos anyway." GoGo frowns in an unusually bitter fashion.

"It's okay," Hiro tries to comfort her, even though the disappointment stings and sears between them. "We still have–" Hiro indicates the seated Tadashi vaguely and GoGo narrows her eyes.

"Scan complete," Baymax is announcing as Hiro and GoGo move closer to the exchange. Honey Lemon, Wasabi and Fred are standing behind the white robot, peeking out cautiously from their makeshift shield. "You require rest and treatment for your bruises and cuts. I suggest icing the bruised area for–"

"Yea, yea. I get it, Marshmallow," Tadashi snaps, folding his arms over his chest. They haven't restrained him, seeing as his injuries are enough to discourage him from moving, but Honey Lemon still has her fingers hovered over her chemical bombs just in case. They've spent ten minutes minutes interrogating him before GoGo and Fred's return, and the information they've garnered is barely enough to fill a single sentence.

"All right, back to business," GoGo steps in, all no-nonsense and business-like. Hiro briefly marvels at how well she can hide her fear and worries, then decides it's not necessarily a good thing if she somehow goes overboard and cracks from the stress. "Who're you working under?" GoGo demands, even though she already knows.

They've all been informed. Twice. But none of them have accepted it anyhow. Hiro doesn't blame them. He doesn't want to think that the good-natured and wise professor whom he's admired almost as much as Tadashi, whom his brother (almost) sacrificed his life for, was capable of stealing his microbots. And given how bitterly Tadashi has described Callaghan, and the fact that he attributes the earlier explosions as another one of the latter's destructive plans to kill him, the pedestal everyone has built for Callaghan is falling apart.

"I was," Tadashi spits out empathically, "Working under Callaghan." Nobody says anything even when GoGo flinches very slightly. "But thanks to _someone_ –" Cue bitter look at Hiro, who stares at his shoes uncomfortably, "He decided I was of no use to him and disposed of me."

"What did you do when you were under him? What did he teach you?"

"How to kill. How to control the microbots fluently. How to… how to lie." Tadashi's eyes clouded with an emotion Hiro cannot decipher.

"What can you remember after the fire?" GoGo pushes on. Her black and yellow helmet has been removed once she entered to the room. Now, it's wrapped in her grip, which is tightening with ever word she exchanges with Tadashi.

"What fire?" Tadashi asks, sounding puzzled for the first time. "How do you know anything about a fire?"

It's also the first time that GoGo looks blatantly uncertain. She breaks her iron gaze from Tadashi and turn to Hiro. There's an unwritten question on her face – _Do I tell him?_ Hiro steps forward and shakes his head imperceptibly. _I will_.

"The… fire," he begins, looking at Tadashi for any signs of reaction. "Do you… remember? It was after my–" He wants to stop, but he can't, because it's his job as Tadashi's little brother (even though Tadashi doesn't even recognize him anymore) to tell him how he supposedly died. Inn a senseless sacrifice for someone who's been manipulating him all this while.

"After I was accepted by the university, we were supposed to go for a celebration. We stayed behind to– to talk," Hiro pauses as his throat starts to burn uncomfortably. The room is quiet, and the sounds of firetrucks and ambulances are fast fading. Hiro decides that he _needs_ to stop thinking back to the past, and the hundred what-ifs lingering in the corners of his mind. What if they just stayed there and talked? What if they left for the celebration and never saw the fire?

What if… Tadashi Hamada never died on that day?

"Then we went back and found… the university in flames. You ran in, because you heard someone say that Professor Callaghan was in there, and you wanted… You wanted to save him." Tadashi's eyes flicker and he flinches at the name 'Callaghan'. His reaction makes Hiro's chest constrict more than he initially expects. "Then the building exploded and… we thought you died."

It's painfully quiet, and the silence is briefly punctuated by Tadashi's heavy, controlled breathing. His face is pale, and he looks _frightened_. It's the only time Hiro sees any shred of emotion that isn't anger or suspicion bubbling from his face. Tadashi stands suddenly, and the shrill scrape of the chair against the floor is enough to snap everyone out of their briefly unguarded states. Wasabi eases himself back and tightens his fists unconsciously. Honey Lemon grips her chemical bombs even tighter. They flinch again when Tadashi starts taking in large gasps of air and breaks into a shuddering cold sweat. His eyes are alight with horror. Fred looks uncertain and confused, as if wondering whether to comfort him, while GoGo can only stare at him hesitantly. On the other hand, Hiro doesn't dare to move. If he does, he thinks he'll run to his brother and give him a bear hug, and he doesn't think the current Tadashi will appreciate that.

"I–" Tadashi says, suddenly, in between shuddering breaths. "I remember a– a fire. I'm in the middle of it; I'm surrounded by flames. It hurts. Everything hurts. I can't– I couldn't breathe." His voice is shaking unnaturally much and Hiro finally realises that Tadashi is _crumbling_.

"I'm– I'm looking for someone. But the fire is so bright. I can't see a thing." His brows are furrowed and one of his hands subconsciously strays to the burn marks on his face. "Then I see someone – I can't remember who, and I'm running towards him, shouting his name, then there's a falling beam and–" Tadashi's expression clears, and he looks dazed. "And I… can't remember anything else."

Hiro doesn't point it out, but he thinks Tadashi wanted to say that he died in that fire. It's not that inaccurate anyway. Tadashi Hamada died in that fire. Tadashi survived. Subconsciously, Hiro starts approaching Tadashi. He looks completely and utterly lost, and in a flash of impulse, Hiro wraps his arms around his brother.

Tadashi's loud breathing stops abruptly, and his body stiffens under the hug. Yet, hesitantly, he places his arms over Hiro's shoulders slowly. Hiro tries not to cry because his brother is alive, alive after some horrible mess he was put through by Callaghan, alive even after he's lost his life, his identity, his memories…'

Then Tadashi pushes him away.

"How…" His breathing is falling back to its regulated, even pace now. "How did you know about the fire. How did… How did you know me before this?" His expression is guarded and his eyes are narrowed in suspicion. Hiro's starting to find it easier to ignore the jagged burn marks on his face.

"I'm Hiro Hamada," He takes a deep breath. "Your brother."

* * *

"Hiro?" It's GoGo that approaches him first.

"I'm fine," Hiro replies quietly before she has the chance to ask. He gives her a tired grin, because they both know that's not true.

"He's still asleep," GoGo reports, changing the subject quickly. Hiro resumes his gloomy expression. He recalls how, after his confession, Tadashi fell into a stony silence, staring at him, blank-eyed. The awkward and palpable silence only fell when Baymax piped up, urging him to sleep.

It's a little surprising, Hiro decides, but justified – given well, everything – that Tadashi has descended into slumber so swiftly. He still goes back to check on him every ten minutes, not really knowing what to think whenever he see his brother. Is he still Tadashi Hamada, the older brother that he's always loved and adored? Or is he a stranger now, with no memories of ever having a family, or younger brother? Will he ever regain his memories? Hiro hopes that it's a yes. Will he ever be the same again? Even if he regains his memories, Hiro doubts so.

"What are we going to do with him?" Hiro finally mumbles aloud to GoGo. He feels guilty for referring to Tadashi as 'him', and he _knows_ he's making a fuss out of nothing. But every time he wants to call out Tadashi's name and tack it verbally to the term 'brother', he hesitates and it feels like his throat is closing up. He's being foolish and unnecessarily dramatic, but he doesn't think this mental block (or whatever that stupid symptom is) is going away any time soon.

"If we leave him here, it might be dangerous for Heathcliff," GoGo admits, popping a new stick of bubblegum in her mouth. She's doing it for often now, Hiro thinks. Chewing on gum, fidgeting, moving, stepping in. He wonders if all this is done to distract herself.

"And we can't exactly tie him up. He's not a threat. We just–" Hiro pauses.

"We just can't trust him." GoGo finishes the sentence for him. "We don't know him yet." They fall back into a depressing silence, and Hiro tries to get his mind to stay on course. He can think about tracking Callaghan later, and beating the pulp out of him because it's _his_ fault that Hiro now has an amnesiac brother to worry about. First things first, he needs to decide where Tadashi is going to stay.

"Do you think you can try… bringing him home?" GoGo is hesitating even as she says this, because, despite Tadashi's injuries and amnesia, he is still potentially dangerous, still a possible threat. Still someone who has the ability to kill, if the training he revealed Callaghan has given him was anything to go by. They're treating their best friend as something akin to a fugitive and it _stings_.

"Home? Home _home_? Like _Lucky Cat Cafe_ home?" It's a horrible idea. It's a dangerous idea. It's a bad idea and the only idea worse than that is Hiro's first armor for Baymax and assumption that he can hold his own against Yokai and his microbots–

Then he remembers that Yokai is, and was, Tadashi. And that realisation still hurts a little bit.

"Are you serious?" Hiro demands, shaking his head and plunging on without waiting for an answer. "No! What about Aunt Cass? It'll be dangerous– What will even tell her?" He rolls his eyes upwards and starts imitating the exchange. "Oh, hey, Aunt Cass. We have a guest for dinner tonight. He's actually your nephew, Tadashi, whom we all thought died in the fire that night. But rest assured, he's alive. He only lost all his memories, been groomed into a would-be assassin, burnt half of his face off and tried to kill his best friends and I. Twice." His voice has reached an unnaturally high pitch by now, the mocking jokes he made searing into his brain like a mark of insensitivity.

Thankfully, GoGo maintains her calm facade, which is lucky, because Hiro is already feeling bad for exploding at her like that now. "Hiro, I don't want to endanger Aunt Cass either. But bringing Tadashi back might make him remember something. After all he's been through, the least he deserves is to go home."

"But what about Aunt Cass?" Hiro falters. He wants to bring Tadashi home. He does. But how is he supposed to explain the situation to Aunt Cass, without letting slip that he's been sneaking out to find a murderer, nearly been killed by his own brother, twice, and is trying to locate a criminal in the midst of this chaos too?

GoGo looks back at him, saying nothing, and that's when Hiro knows.

"I'm not going to tell her, am I?"

"I don't have the right to tell you to do anything, Hiro," GoGo points out, and suddenly, she sounds so tired. It makes him feel a pang. GoGo's been one of his strongest pillars of support ever since he's decided to pursue this case, and she still is, even now. She's the one who trains til the latest and the one who rises the earliest; if she even goes to sleep at all. But even her infallible strength can't hold the suffocating weight of all her friends' lives forever.

"But this Tadashi isn't the Tadashi we know. He's lost his memories, and he may as well still be a target for Callaghan." GoGo bites down even harder on her bubblegum when she mentions the Professor's name. "I just think that the less Aunt Cass knows, the safer she'll be."

Hiro can see the logic in GoGo's words. Despite the faith he has in all his friends, he doesn't think it's a good idea to trust Tadashi with anyone but himself.

Yet even as he says this in his mind, he can still remember Aunt Cass after Tadashi's death – How she binge ate until she vomited on her favorite carpet once, and threw it away just so Hiro wouldn't suspect. How she stood at the empty doorway of their room when she thought Hiro was asleep, staring quietly at her late nephew's bed. How she cried into her pillow at night, a mixture of muffled screams and hot tears, not knowing that Hiro can hear everything because he's just outside her doorstep. How she's always extra chirpy after the nights she spent crying, so they can both pretend she doesn't have shadows under her red-rimmed eyes.

It's like hiding Baymax, Hiro thinks, only far, far worse.

* * *

When GoGo and Hiro return to the room, Hiro can tell that everyone has been pacing. There are three different footprint patterns on the velvet carpet. Fred, Honey Lemon and Wasabi glance at him anxiously as Tadashi starts blinking groggily, looking around to ascertain where he is.

"C'mon," Hiro takes a deep breath and shoots Tadashi a hesitant smile. "I'm bringing you home."

* * *

 **Extra notes:**

 **GoGo's role as (to my interpretation) the group's second-in-command and Hiro's advisor (when she prevented him from killing Callaghan) has been expedited to before the reveal of Yokai's identity, and she receives a heavy chunk of characterisation in this chapter. I will do my best to step up my game for Honey Lemon, Wasabi, Fred, Baymax and even Tadashi as well, and hope that I have succeeded in exploiting the angst in this chapter's scenarios**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's notes: This has been sitting in my laptop for almost a year. I didn't want to publish it until now cos... my writing has been suffering and I'm pretty much starting to re-evaluate it.**

 **(I've been trying to continue 'moments with you', but for some reason or other I can't quite capture the same lighthearted humour in the chapters than before. If anyone has any suggestions; feel free to include it in your review or PM me).**

 ** **Anyhow, this has been on a hiatus for long enough. It's pathetically short, but, hopefully, still as emotional in a different way.****

* * *

"Shhhh," Hiro says, even if there is no need to do so. His hands are hovering over the doorknob as he tries to deduce whether Aunt Cass is in the kitchen or not. Even though it's been almost five minutes since he started straining his ears for any sounds.

Hiro stands behind the door, a troubled expression still on his face.

Tadashi stands behind him with his arms crossed, an eyebrow quirked in disbelief.

Baymax stands behind the both of them, blinking slowly.

" _This_ , is where I'll be staying?" Tadashi gives the entrance of the Lucky Cat Cafe a disparaging glance. "There's a professor-turned-criminal out there who'll probably come after me when he finds out I didn't die, and this shabby cafe is where I'm supposed to stay?"

"Shhhh!" Hiro hisses louder this time, even though Tadashi's blatant contempt for his former home hurts more than it should. "It could help in–"

"Hiro? Is that you?" He stiffens. It's Aunt Cass. She heard them.

"Yea, I just... I just got here," he stammers loudly, racking his brain for an excuse. "Are you... Are you cooking tonight?"

There's a clanging of a bowl, which Hiro takes as confirmation. He eases the door open, wincing as it creaks, and urges Tadashi and Baymax to hurry in before Aunt Cass sticks her head pass the stairs to check on him.

"You've been working so hard at the university recently," Aunt Cass shouts. "So I'm fixing you a nutritious dinner..."

Hiro starts to ascend the stairs.

Aunt Cass' back is turned when they finally reach the top, Hiro hesitates, wondering whether to make a break for it or stall for a while longer. He has one foot out of the stairwell when Aunt Cass turns around at the exact moment. Hiro nearly falls over himself shoving Tadashi and Baymax into obscurity. He shoots her an uncomfortable grin when she sees him.

"Hiro?" Aunt Cass beckons for him to come closer. Hiro obligates, mouthing at Tadashi and pointing discretely at the opposite set of stairs. While he distracts Aunt Cass, he wants Tadashi to pull Baymax along until they reach his room.

"Yeeeessss? Aunt Cass?" Hiro hurries over to Aunt Cass' side breathlessly. Out of his peripheral vision, he can see Tadashi tugging at Baymax's arm insistently, irritation written across his face. Baymax waddles by him, oblivious to how his movements are painfully slow and clumsy in the secrecy of the situation.

"I know things have been really hard since... Since Tadashi's gone." Aunt Cass swallows. "And I just want you to know that... I'm proud of how hard you're trying to move forward after it," she manages a watery smile, and all Hiro thinks is oh god _no_ please not _now_ –

"Sometimes, I still think that this is all a dream, and that Tadashi would come walking through the door at any moment."

Hiro feels his heart nearly stop.

Aunt Cass stops herself and laughs, even though it sounds sad, even though they both know she will never be over the death of her older nephew. And the guilt threatens to make Hiro spill everything out. About his late night escapades, Tadashi's current fate, the sheer danger of the situation they're in right now and how Aunt Cass may come home one day to news that her younger nephew is gone too.

It'd be easy, Hiro thinks, telling her the truth. Aunt Cass is his guardian, he shouldn't be hiding secrets from her – much less one of this magnitude. And most importantly, Aunt Cass deserves to know that Tadashi is alive.

As Aunt Cass closes her eyes and sighs, Hiro tries to smile comfortingly.

But he doesn't say anything.

"I won't keep you waiting," Aunt Cass changes the subject. "I know you still have a lot of work to catch up on–" Hiro's heart jolts when he realises that's the lie he gave the last time he snuck Baymax into his room.

"Wait, well, Aunt Cass, since I'm a growing boy – and you're such a great cook," Hiro beams so brightly that he thinks his face might crack. He wonders when he became such a smooth liar. "Can I have two plates of that?" To his immense relief, Aunt Cass doesn't ask; only smiles cheerfully and agrees to his request.

"I'll bring the plates down when I'm done!" Hiro yells down as he hops up the stairs, hoping the volume can drown out the guilt smothering him.

When he bursts into the room, Tadashi is staring at his side of the room quietly. For a while, Hiro watches silently, not knowing what to say.

"Looks like you found your room," he finally mumbles. Tadashi shoots him a blank gaze, and Hiro hastily hands him a plate of Aunt Cass' food.

"Eat. You'll feel better." At least, it's what Tadashi used to tell him anyway. Tadashi pokes at the plate of in mild suspicion, and it is only when Hiro starts wolfing down the plate, ravenous from the day's activities, that he finally takes a single bite.

Tadashi gives a half smile once he chews his food and swallows. Hiro tries not to smile too hard at that. It's the most normal expression he's seen on Tadashi so far.

"I miss..." Tadashi starts to mumble, and Hiro waits for him to continue, his eyes hopeful and wide because if Tadashi misses something, then maybe, just _maybe_ –

"... Not having to eat stolen food." Tadashi clears his throat. "Callaghan... Callaghan always made me steal food from diners and restaurants when I was hungry. He said it was good training. And less costly."

Hiro deflates. But at least Tadashi is talking more. He gives a hesitant smile, hoping to catch his eye, but Tadashi only looks away, staring at what used to be his bed. He places the plate on the ground and seats himself on it, letting out a long, defeated sigh before closing his eyes. Hiro feels the hundreds of questions bubbling on his lips as he sees the dark crescents under his brother's eyes – not unlike the one he used to spot after a series of days where he had to bail Hiro out of late night botfights continually.

It makes Hiro think of how Tadashi always used to bail him out all the time, no matter how tired he was from University. And that memory is enough to strengthen his resolve – to help Tadashi recover his memories, his former life, and to make Callaghan pay for all the pain he subjected them to.

And Hiro's willing to do all that for Tadashi. Even if it means having to maintain a facade in front of Aunt Cass.

He bends to pick the empty plate up. The cutlery makes a tiny 'chink' when he shifts them slightly, and he pretends not to see Tadashi's eyes fly open and his body to tense. He tries not to think about how Callaghan had trained and conditioned him. But the one thought that refuses to leave his mind was how Callaghan had been Tadashi's teacher in more ways than one.

After returning the plates (without any questions from Aunt Cass, thankfully, seeing as she went out to shop for groceries), Hiro locks the door quietly, knowing that as tired as he is, he's not going to be sleeping for the next few hours – not with the worry weighing heavy on his shoulders, not with the secret he's keeping from Aunt Cass eating him up alive.


End file.
